1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a pneumatic vehicle tire, preferably for a truck, with the tire in particular being suitable for use on the drive axles of the vehicle. The tire is a belted tire, i.e. is provided with an inextensible belt to stabilize the sides of the tire. The tire has a tread construction which, in addition to the rows of blocks in the central portion of the tread, also includes a row of blocks in each of the edge regions of the tread.
2. Description of the Prior Art
It is known to provide approximately cylindrical surfaces on both sides of the side rows of blocks in the shoulder region of the tire. These cylindrical surfaces thus connect on both sides to the active portion of the tread strip or tread surface. With the heretofore known tires, the tread profiling is embodied in such a way that those grooves of the profiling that open out freely to the outer sides, merge with the aforementioned, laterally disposed cylindrical surfaces via a considerable step or shoulder. This configuration of the edges of the tread leads to distinct deformations and stresses in the region of the tire shoulders.
The object of the present invention is essentially to design a tire of the aforementioned general type in such a way that the tire has shoulder portions which can be stressed in a dynamically favorable manner, and that, at the same time, the tire has a wide support surface when the ground beneath the actual tread is soft, with this support surface being in contact with the ground when the latter is hard. In other words, the support surface of the tread makes contact with hard ground and both the support surface and the smooth cylindrical surface contact the ground when the ground is soft.